Writer and Community Organizer Amy Ketner

This week’s Writer Wednesday features DWR member Amy Ketner!

Amy is a writer and community organizer from Detroit. When she’s not working on her manuscript at her bay window, you can find her cross stitching or reading at a Great Lakes beach. Read more about her below!

What writing projects are you currently working on?

I am several drafts (and years) deep in a literary fiction manuscript. Set in the woods of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, the novel is of a woman who finds herself by getting lost in the woods and in community efforts to stop a pipeline that threatens to change everything. On the journey, she realizes that, although our interconnection with each other and nature may feel vulnerable, it is the very thing that makes us resilient, the one thing that can save us. 

What is your favorite part of the writing process?

You know that feeling when the rest of the world fades away and you’re in the zone, just you, your words and your characters? That’s my favorite. 

What does your writing workspace look like?

My writing desk is in the front room of my home, at a bay window on the second floor. I look out at trees and rooftops and moon risings, and dream of possibility as my fingers clack away on the keys. 

However, I write on a laptop, so as they say, have purse (laptop) will travel (and write)!

When did you first discover your love for writing? Were there any key moments or influences that sparked your passion?

Under the bed in my parents’ guestroom — the room that used to be mine — are boxes of childhood diaries, with covers featuring puppies, hippy flowers, and Lisa Frank designs, and pages filled with stories I dreamed up. As a kid, I would climb the tree in my front yard and write and write and write. 

An excellent high school AP Language teacher, Mr. King, honed my passion and ability to string words together. In college, I began to write mostly creative nonfiction. Words helped me to digest the world. But then, a mix of Barbara Kingsolver, the pandemic, writing courses and NaNoWriMo  all helped me to return to my childhood love for writing fiction. 
Through it all, my mom has been my biggest writing cheerleader, and my favorite fellow book nerd. 

What is your favorite non-writing hobby?

I love to cross stitch while listening to audiobooks, or take unplugged walks to center myself in nature. There’s nothing better, though, than a day reading at a Great Lakes beach!

What is your favorite piece of writing advice?

I’m a fan of Anne Lamott’s classic advice: write a “shitty first draft.” Just do it. 

The best thing I’ve done for my writing this year is take a DIY writing retreat. I rented an Airbnb on a little lake in northern Michigan and cozied in alone for several days of concentrated writing (some good reading and hikes, too!). There are many creative ways to do this, if getting away isn’t accessible. Whatever it takes, believe that you and your writing deserve the time, focus and energy. 

Follow Amy on Instagram at @amyketner14.

— Interview by Jenna Hausmann